Establishing the Authorship Date of Revelation Yeshua/Jesus and Judaism versus Paul and Christianity
When it comes to the date of 96 A.D. that scholars point to, all of them rest the entirety of their case on a single short and obscure statement made by Eusebius in the early fourth century where he quoted a lost, late second century document of Irenaeus. Here are the supposed end-all-debate words of Eusebius and his quote of Irenaeus.
“In this persecution, it is handed down by tradition, that the apostle and evangelist John, who was yet living, in consequence of his testimony to the divine word, was condemned to dwell on the island of Patmos. Irenaeus, indeed, in his fifth book against the heresies, …speaks in the following manner respecting him; ‘If, however, it were necessary to proclaim the name of the Anti-Christ, … it would have been declared by him who saw the revelation, for it is not long since it was seen, but almost in our own generation, at the close of Domitian’s reign.’” (Eusebius, III, XVII)
It should be pointed out that there is some degree of uncertainty as to Eusebius’s understanding of who Irenaeus was referring to here. Was it Domitian, or Domitius (Nero)? It is interesting to note that where the book of Revelation is included in the Syriac versions of the Bible, it is entitled “The Revelation which was made by God to John the evangelist in the island of Patmos, into which he was thrown by
Nero Caesar.”
Even if Irenaeus had indicated that the Revelation was given to John later during Domitian’s reign, one must ask how much doctrinal stock they want to put in a man who was well known for making fantastic errors in dates and times. Irenaeus also taught, for example, that
Yahshua was crucified at fifty years of age! (See Irenaeus Against Heresies, chapter 22) There is also the fact to consider that Irenaeus, like most Christian scholars,
was a loyal fan of Paul and might have been well aware of the implications against him if the Revelation proved to have been written some thirty years earlier.
Irenaeus’ few words as quoted by Eusebius are all that exist for outside evidence that Revelation was written very late in the first century. That’s it! There is nothing more! Nada! All scholars who opt for the later date must ultimately rest the entirety of their case on
these few obscure and unreliable words of Irenaeus.
There is however within the book of Revelation considerable evidence that clearly indicates it was written before the destruction of the Temple in 70 A.D. If recognized academic credentials are of any value to the reader, scholars who have argued for this earlier time period include; David E. Aune, Ph.D. ; A. Tholuck, D.D. ; and J.A.T. Robinson, Ph.D. just to name a few.
There is also internal evidence that can pinpoint the time of John’s vision to early 67 A.D. In chapter 11, John is told to measure the temple of God.
Then I was given a reed like a measuring rod. And the angel stood, saying, “Rise and measure the temple of God, the altar, and those who worship there. But leave out the court which is outside the temple, and do not measure it, for it has been given to the Gentiles. And they will trample the holy city under foot—forty two months.” Revelation 11:1-2
The temple that is spoken of here is without question the earthly temple
in Jerusalem and not to be confused with the temple “
in heaven” spoken of later. This should be obvious in light of the fact that “the holy city” (Jerusalem) was going to be “trampled”. The one in heaven
will never be “trampled”.
Not only does this indicate that
at the time of John’s vision the temple had not yet been destroyed, but the interpretation of “forty-two months” is open to debate and could actually pin point the time of John’s vision. Did the angel mean that Jerusalem would be given to the Gentiles and trampled for a period of forty-two months? Most English translations interject the word
“for” into the text, but it is not found in the Greek manuscripts and is the reason why some translations italicize the word. Or, could the
angel have indicated that the city would fall in forty-two months time from the showing of the prophecy to John and then be trampled by the Gentiles … possibly for a much longer period of time? This second interpretation where Jerusalem is predicted to fall in a given time and then is trampled for a much longer period of time dovetails perfectly with what Yahshua prophesied in Luke 21:20-24 …not to mention the facts of history.
“But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know that its desolation is near. Then let those in Judea flee to the mountains, let those who are in the midst of her depart, and let not those who are in the country enter her. For these are the days of vengeance, that all things which are written may be fulfilled. But woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days! For there will be great distress in the land and wrath upon this people. And they will fall by the edge of the sword, and be led away captive into all nations, and Jerusalem will be trampled by Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.”
The facts of history are that Jerusalem fell and the temple was destroyed in 70 A.D. Jerusalem was trampled by the Gentiles for at least 1,897 years until 1967 when it was retaken by Israel in the six day war. One could argue that Jerusalem is still being trampled by the Gentiles in light of the fact that Islamic mosques continue to occupy the temple site! Either way the point is made. Jerusalem has been trampled for a very long time. And considering the fact that there is no historical reconciliation of a short forty-two month long trampling of Jerusalem, we must conclude that the angel meant Jerusalem would fall in 42 months time from when he showed John the vision. Jerusalem was besieged by Rome shortly after Passover in 70 A.D. and fell several months later.
Forty-two months before then would have been early 67 A.D. …right at the time of the Neronian persecution!
